To focus on something other than the bulb issue for a bit, here are some great solar lighting solutions.

1. Hybrid Solar Lighting

Never mind the inflated numbers for lighting at the beginning. All this fiber optic lighting installation needs to operate is one 9V battery per week. A standard flourescent tube takes over when it starts getting dark outside. This type of installation is probably most suited for offices and shops, in buildings that are not too tall.

Fiber-optically transmitted light was all the rage in the 90s, but now we rarely hear much about it. For museums especially it is ideal, as one can get the light without the IR and UV components that bleach or damage sensitive objects. The light source does not have to be solar even though solar makes it a more energy saving technology. Fibre optics can be used with any light source of choice.

Another, simpler, technology to get sunlight is to use solar tubes for leading the sunlight into one’s house.

3. Solar Bottle Bulbs

An even more low-tech version for sunny countries if you have no electricity:

Of course, 2 and 3 two only work in the daytime, but that’s still quite a few hours per day when no use of stinking polluting kerosene or other alternative light sources are needed, for example solar powered light.